Leo
by Created to Write
Summary: Melissa and a group of her friends are hiking the Central American Jungle, but something halts the experience. Melissa is missing and while the stolen items are returned, the hiker is no where to be found. 2007 TMNT. (It is complete, I'm just going to upload the chapters one at a time.)
1. Chapter 1

**I worked on this in my spare time and it is finished. All of it. I'll put up one chapter this week and then add another next week.**

 **I hope you like it.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own the 2007 movie. I do own my OC's.**

 _ **[This has been edited thanks to the help of rookblonkorules]**_

* * *

Light shines through the dry straw ceiling as the sun rises in the jungle. Melissa opens her eyes when open drifts over her eyelids. She sits up on the wooden frame and thin mattress. The house is small and cramped, but it is what the villagers had lent her and her group for the night. She stands up and selects her jacket from the chair in the corner and walks across the dirt floor to the door. She opens it, walks out of the confined space, and stretches her sore muscles.

Houses like the one she was in dot the cleared space in front of her. Larger buildings for other purposes are seldom, since each family does their own things in their houses. Villagers are already bustling about their daily lives. Melissa looks up and sees the sun peeking over the tall jungle trees to the East of the village.

Melissa and a group of her friends have been traveling the Central American jungle. They are all experienced hikers and in their mid twenties. Each village they come to, they stay for a day and continue on. This village, like the last one, have been warning the group about staying too long. But Melissa and her friends will risk it, since the next stop may not be as nice as this one.

Melissa sees her group under a tree a few paces away. The her house is near the edge. She walks over and greets them, "Alice, Melchora, Brandon. How are you all doing?" Melissa looks around, noting someone is missing, "Where is Felipe?" She asks.

"We don't know. He's probably frightened of the snake he saw before heading off to bed last night," Melchora suggests. Sometimes they wonder why Felipe even came. He has been jumping out of his skin the whole trek, and they've already been out here for a week. They started in the south and are trekking up to the north, with a friend that didn't want to come waiting to pick them up in Mexico.

"This whole thing is exciting! But Felipe puts it in perspective for all of us. It is dangerous out here," Alice says, ever the optimist. She stands up for anyone, seeing the good and bad of every situation.

"Did you guys here the stories around here? A few people mentioned.. la Fantasma de la Selva," Brandon whispers the Spanish name.

"The ghost of the jungle?" Melissa asks, translating, "I don't think it exists."

"Why not? I heard the last village we passed say something like it. They were attacked and then something, mysterious, showed up and saved them," Alice adds.

Melissa rolls her eyes, "Did any of them see this 'ghost'?" Alice shares a look with Brandon before they both shake their heads. "Right. No evidence. Well, I'm going to get Felipe out." She walks away and her friends start talking again about the food, or the ghost again. Something.

Melissa walks to the building next to her house. This one is larger than hers. She would have stayed there too, but there wasn't enough room for an extra person. She walks through the door and sees the three sleeping bags on the floor her friends were using. There is a curtain going to the one bedroom, which Felipe had claimed.

She pushes it back and steps through. "Hello?" Felipe asks, looking up with half lidded eyes. Melissa rolls her eyes for the second time this morning.

"It's Melissa, Felipe. Gotta come out now. You are the last, again," she sighs. He shudders at the thought of going back into the jungle.

"I'll be right out."

"Why did you come, Felipe?"

"..I wanted to be near you. We've always been close to where the other is.. I didn't want to wait until you got back."

"I love you too little brother," Melissa calls as she walks away. Felipe is her younger-by-one-hour twin. Her mother remembers that well. Melissa hears a bang come from the main yard when she enters the main room again. "Felipe, stay here."

"But you said-"

"Trust me." Melissa walks to the door of the house and pushes it open. When Melissa steps out, there is a gun pressing against her temple. "Who are you?" She asks in Spanish.

"Protection, you?" He asks. She grabs the barrel of the gun and shoves it away. It goes off, not harming anyone. She kicks him in the stomach, using the gun as balance. He lets go of the gun and she tosses it away. She elbows him hard in the chin. He drops to the ground, groaning.

"Just visiting," Melissa answers.

"We don't need problems," another person says behind her, also in Spanish. He grabs her arms and pulls them behind her back. She uses her free foot to kick him in a very soft spot. He groans audibly, but doesn't let go.

"Feisty," Melissa looks up at a big guy. He's obviously the leader of this band of thieves. He has a jungle green cap on and his jacket matches the color. His beard is scraggly and dirty. She glares at him. "You are, American, yes?" He asks, with a limited English vocabulary. She just glares at him. He comes closer. She readies her foot for an attack, but he steps on top of her toes before she can do anything. "You are pretty, senorita," he comments. She struggles to get away. His breath is right in her face and she doesn't like it. "Look in the houses," he commands, reverting back to Spanish.

Three guys, including the one that Melissa had socked, go through the village with guns. They find food, valuables, and anything else that they think is of any use. They pile it by a truck. The villagers don't do anything. They just watch and hold their children close.

'Why don't they do anything?' Melissa wonders.

"No! Let go of that!" One of the women of the village is tugging a vase away from one of the men.

"Mama!" Her little boy in a brown cowboy like hat runs over to help. But he's grabbed and pulled away. "Mama! Help!" The thug with the vase grabs the woman's wrist and drags her with him.

"'Ey boss," one says. The big guy walks away from Melissa, and she puts up a struggle more now that she has her feet free.

"Let go!" The woman is tossed into the center of a loose circle made by the scared villagers. The thugs laugh.

"We thank you for the generous donation for the continued protection of your village," the leader says, smirking. He eyes a gold necklace around her neck, "After all-" he swipes the jewelry away, "-the jungle can be a dangerous place," and chuckles as the final pieces are put in their truck. The boy is let go and he runs to his mom.

"Mama!" Melissa kicks the guy holding her again and he let's go this time. She runs at the leader to force him to give the necklace back. But two of his men turn on her with their guns and shoot. Melissa hears screams and she looks down at her body. There are two new holes, one on her left bicep, the other through her right shoulder. The pain is distant at first, but then it rushes onto her and she collapses. One of the thugs picks her up and she's tossed over his shoulder.

"Melissa!" Felipe yells. Melissa wants to tell him to stay back, but she can't. The pressure on her shoulder is too much. She hopes the others are alright. They all get on the truck and she is thrown in the back with a couple of the thugs. They tie her wrists together, not like she'll do anything. Then they drive off. Melissa struggles against the pain, but soon she becomes uneasily warm and faints from blood loss.

* * *

 **I added more to the beginning scene of the movie. Figured that it would be an interesting idea.**

 **It came from, 'What if there was a tv show about Leo's time in the jungle?'**

 **They should have continued those movies, and given us fans a jungle story. We don't know what happened out there. It must have been quite an adventure.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Roxygirl! So happy to hear your virtual voice again! I've missed you. Well, here's your update, as promised, half a week later. I decided to not wait as long.**

 **Also, check out the past chapter if you want, fellow readers. I've updated it. One of you (and you know who you are, rookblonkorules) critiqued it. I love critiques to help better my writing. Just more detail was added, nothing plot changing.**

 **Chapter 2!**

 _ **[This has been edited thanks to the help of rookblonkorules]**_

* * *

When she wakes up, the truck is still moving. She's on her back, like before. She cries out, from pain. A thug clamps a hand on her mouth and she's too weak to bite it. She looks at her shoulder and it is a solid red color. Her bicep is no better. She glares as best she can at her captors. Then the jeep stops.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!" The leader says, sitting in the front. He slaps who Melissa guesses is the driver.

"There is a log on the road, senor," the driver explains.

"Well if you aren't too busy, remove it!" The leader yells two names and the guys around Melissa get out of the truck to move the tree. She tries to sit up, but she groans. Someone yelps, but it's out of her vision, so she doesn't know what's happening.

"Dios mio," the driver says. Another yelp is heard and the driver shrieks.

A third guy is standing next to the truck with his gun out. He cocks it and looks around for an intruder. A loop made of a vine comes down and wraps around his waist. He sees it and doesn't have any time to warn the others before he's pulled up into the trees. His gun goes off in rapid fire and he drops it.

"I-It's the ghost, of the jungle," the driver says from his spot, "He punishes those who prey upon the weak. He's coming." He gets out of the truck. Then Melissa hears a thump and he shrieks. "I-I just remembered I left the stove on and my wife, she hates that!" Melissa watches a blurry image of a scrawny guy run away, back down the road they came. The leader who is now all alone, tells him to come back, but he gets a scared reply that he's on his own.

The leader gets out and taunts the mysterious intruder. Then he disappears into the jungle, leaving Melissa to herself. She pants from the blood loss and the overall pain her body is feeling. She can't remember any other injuries, but her entire body seems so consumed by pain that there must be more.

She hears a gunshot far off. She freezes, listening for more sound. But she only hears the wind and occasional bird call. Some leaves rustle, but it could be nothing. She tries to sit up, to find a sharp object, something, but she runs out of options as her head swims and she has to stop moving.

"Ermm.." she groans. The truck turns on. 'What happened? Is the thug back? Or is this someone ne-' she groans loudly again, 'No thinking. Hurts too much.'

A shadow, from the back lights of the truck, over takes what her vision allows. She feels darkness pushing at her consciousness and she catches a glimpse of a brown cloak before she lets it take her.

* * *

After the robbers left the village, the population scattered throughout the buildings. Each family checked their home for what was missed by the evil men's eyes. The hikers went to their small hut. All but one.

Brandon checks Felipe's room while the girls look over the main room. After a moment of searching and coming up with only a stray pot, Melchora looks around. "Where's Felipe?" The others look up, also noting the hiker's absence. "Felipe!" They shuffle out the door and see Felipe standing where he was before. He's staring out at the road.

"Felipe," Alice says, walking over to him.

"She's gone.." Felipe says.

"C'mon Felipe," Brandon says, tugging his arm, "Let's help check the houses." The shocked twin lets his friend pull him away. Felipe sees Melissa's hut and goes over to it. He walks through the door. Her backpack was taken, along with the blanket on the bed. The chair is in pieces. Numbely, Felipe sits on the bed, hearing it creak from the added weight.

"Felipe?" Alice walks in and sits down next to him. He looks up at her sadly and then turns back to his hands.

"I should have done something," Felipe says, forlornly, "I should not have been scared. She is my sister."

"You couldn't do anything," Brandon says, sitting on his other side. They all understand what he means. Melchora sits on the floor, taking Felipe's hands.

"There was nothing any of us could do, without getting shot as well."

"We can't just leave her behind! She's hurt, she.. she could be dead!" Felipe puts his hands in his hair. Nothing is going right. They weren't supposed to have this happen. They shouldn't have stayed longer.

The group sits for a moment, consoling one another with their company. Then Brandon and Melchora get up to help with the larger buildings. There was nothing left in Melissa's. Alice stays with Felipe until one of them comes back.

"Look!" Felipe turns his head to the window. The little boy in the brown hat is pointing up the road. He sees the truck come barreling down the hill. It comes to a stop after hitting a tree. A mother looks at it, seeing that there are no thugs inside.

"It's a miracle," she says. Felipe is given hope and he gets up. He joins the crowd that had gathered around the truck. Men had started to form a line in the back, handing things to each other and piling it where people can search for their stuff. Felipe joins the line and passes vases, jewelry, and whatever else was handed to him. He looks up to the front after fifteen minutes of this. He's wondering if Melissa is in the back.

"Is my sister.. Hello? Is my sister up there?" he asks the man next to him that is closer. But he doesn't answer. Felipe isn't good with Spanish. Alice is, so she goes farther up and talks to a few of the men now in the bed of the truck. She comes back and shakes her head.

"No one is in the back, Felipe. But there are pools of, blood," Alice relays. Felipe looks at the jungle. When someone yells at him to take a jug, he steps out of the line.

"We need to find her," he says, "I'll search the whole jungle if I have to."

"Don't worry," Felipe looks at the young boy who had pointed out the truck, "la Fantasma de la Selva saved her. He'll take care of her." He hugs Felipe's legs, "You'll see your hermana again, senor. I know it." Felipe crouches and hugs the little boy back. He wants to believe him, but a ghost?

'What can a ghost do about wounds?' But Felipe holds onto the shred of hope the little boy and his faith in the impossible it brings.

* * *

 **More in what happens in the movie, but added the OC's to it a little.**

 **Thoughts? Suggestions? Critiques?**


	3. Chapter 3

**Roxygirl- Thanks for the review. Really? Hm, I guess I'm better at 1st person and it carries over a tiny bit.. maybe.. What I do is try to have my 3rd POV be, like.. I have it centered on a certain person, like the narrator is sitting on their shoulder and knows what they think and feel. And if I need to, I shift it to a different characters shoulders. I know that is a type of 3rd POV, but I tend to.. lose, some IQ over the summer. I don't study in the three month break.**

 **We know him, we love him, you have been waiting for his appearance since you saw the title, give it up for...**

 _ **El Fantasma de la Selva!**_

 **Melissa is one lucky hiker.**

 _ **[Not much to correct this time, but still got a critique from rookblonkorules]**_

 _ **[Also, I received critiques from Roxygirl and GuestGirl that were helpful]**_

 ** _[My Spanish has been corrected by I Love Kittens Too]_**

* * *

When Melissa came to, her head pulsed with a headache. She felt like she was tossed into a furnace and not even the Arctic could cool her down. Her body was overcome with aches, most of which originated from her arms. She didn't feel like moving, but she still tried. Her eyes stayed closed and she felt sweat dripping down from her forehead.

"Careful," someone says. Melissa can't resist the hand that gently pushes her back to the ground. "You're injured."

"..Yeah," she groans, "No kidding." Melissa opens her eyes and tries to look around but the pain in her arm forces them closed again.

"I need to take out the bullet. This may hurt." A prod digs into the hole in her bicep, and Melissa screams at the intense feeling of pain in her body. The prod finds the bullet and it comes out, along with a fresh river of blood. Melissa pants at the pain, but it isn't over yet. A cloth comes down onto the wound and she does more than flinch when it cleans away the blood and is wrapped up. The pain starts to subside a little after it's left alone.

"W-Weren't there two?" she asks, not registering a prod on her other side.

"No," the mysterious voice says, "The other one exited out your back. I had to patch it up, but there was no bullet." Melissa sighs, groaning at the pain in her chest, "You are very lucky." His voice is pleasant to Melissa's ear. But it stays detached from the injured girl.

Melissa waits for the pain to dull, but when it doesn't, she opens her eyes yet again. She's in a cave, vines and fronds poking out a hole near the top. Thin streams of light poke the floor. She is on the dirt and stone floor, moss below her for padding. A fire is lit not too far away. On the other side, a stranger sits down. He has a brown cloak around him, concealing his identity.

"Th-thank you," she says. He looks up suddenly and then looks back at the food he's roasting over the fire.

"It was nothing. You were in trouble, I am honor bound to help." His voice is smooth and calm. She can't tell how old he is, but he must be young. The fire blocks out most of his form.

"Who are you?" Melissa asks. The figure doesn't answer. "I said-"

"You should save your strength," he interrupts, "You don't want a relapse."

"I think I need to get better before I'm able to go through a relapse."

"All the more reason to rest," he counters, turning his fish.

"My name's Melissa," she says. He doesn't give one back. She looks up at the open ceiling and tries to find something to talk about. "What about the truck?"

"It is back at the village," he answers. Melissa sighs. They have it all back.

"What about-"

"Look, miss. You really need to sleep."

"..How long have I been out?" She asks. He sighs.

"All last night. It is about noon." Melissa looks at him, surprised.

"I need to get back."

"No."

"But-"

"No!" She looks at him. The tone he used was one of a warrior. Someone she shouldn't trifle with. "With those injuries, you'll never make it back. Your group will be fine, Melissa."

"But, Felipe.. my.. my brother-" this stuns the stranger. "My brother.. he's waiting for me. He was so scared when coming, but he didn't want to be separated from me. I need him to know I'm alright."

"..You have a family back home?"

"..How do you know I'm not a villager?"

"I've seen you and your group before. American?" He asks.

"Yes. I speak English," only now does she realize that they have been conversing in Spanish. "Do you?"

"Yes," he says, changing languages. The slight Spanish accent that he had held when talking before was gone, showing her a New York accent, however mild it may be.

"You are from America too," she realizes. He nods, not pressing it further. "You.. you are the ghost of the jungle?"

".. That's one of the name's I go by."

"And what is another?" The ghost looks up at her. She sees golden brown eyes peek back at her from beneath his cloak. He looks away.

"Not for you to know." Melissa looks at the fish, hungry. He sees this and picks up the stick it is attached to. He walks over to her and breaks off a piece. She reaches for it, but grimaces when pain shoots up her arm. "Let me." He places the fish in her mouth and she chews it. He feeds her and she slowly brings a hand up to her chest.

"That's good," she said when he moves away. He picks up another fish and eats it himself.

Melissa savors the fish, even if she isn't a fan of it. But she watches him. He doesn't seem to be a savage, since he breaks pieces off like he did for her. He takes out a skin and drinks some water from it.

"Need some?" He asks. She nods, wincing. Even moving her neck hurts. She waits for him to lift her back up so she can drink from the skin of water. When he does so, Melissa acts before she thinks. She grabs his cloak to balance herself, since she becomes dizzy of the movement. She forgot she was still holding onto it. When he moves away, it stays.

"Oh, I'm sorr-" she looks at him. He quickly puts the cloak on his head and walks back to his spot. Melissa takes another moment to stare at him. No wonder he wears a cloak. "You don't have to hide," she comments, "I saw what you are."

"You didn't see anything. It's just an illusion from your nausea," he corrects.

"I don't think so." He looks up at her amid his chore of poking the fire. "I'm not scared. I'm in a jungle for crying out loud. I'm not easily scared."

The stranger thinks about the decision and then relents. She won't tell anyone. Even if she did, she'd sound crazy. So he lifts the hood off his head and shrugs the cloak off his shoulders. In front of Melissa, he stands up.

He's a six foot turtle. He has a shell, a plastron, three fingers and two toes per attached limb. His golden brown eyes are wrapped in a blue cloth, which ties in a knot at the back of his head. He has wraps on his ankles and wrists and his elbows and knees have pads.

"So, you are a, mutant turtle?" She asks. He nods. "So, urg.." she pauses, groaning, "what's your name?"

"I still don't want to tell you," he says. He kneels next to her and unwraps her shoulder for inspection.

"You don't trust me," she observes. He focuses on his task, not paying mind to her statement. "Why?" He cleans the wound again, making her flinch.

"I haven't trusted anyone for a long time," the turtle admits. He wraps the wound up and looks at her arm.

"How long have you been down here?" She asks.

"Almost two years," he says, not paying mind to what she knew.

"..Why?" She asks again. He looks at her eyes.

"Why are you so interested in my life?" He asks. Melissa wants to shrug, but she thinks better of it.

"I'm curious. I don't know why." The turtle finishes wrapping up the bicep and she gets a close look at his. "You must have trained before coming down here."

"I'm a ninja," he answers, standing up, "I strike hard and fade into the night. I protect those that can't protect themselves."

"Honorable words. You must have had a good teacher," Melissa says, unintentionally stinging the turtle again.

"Yes, I did."

"So.. can you just tell me one name? One. Something to call you," Melissa presses.

"You can call me el Fantasma de la Selva," he answers, irritated. The turtle gets up and paces around the room.

Melissa becomes tired, since all her talking and moving, however slight, had worn her through. "I'm going to sleep."

"Yeah, you do that. I'll go and send a message to your, brother. You'll be safe here." He puts his cloak back on and climbs up a low hanging vine.

* * *

 **I think this is going rather well.**

 **Well,** **thoughts? Critiques are not only welcome, but NECESSARY!**

 **Like I said on Freedom please _don't_ comment, 'Update soon.' It doesn't help. I _will_ update, soon or not. I love encouragement, but that isn't it.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I'd like to thank everybody for reviewing my story. And for the guest reviews, here are your replies:**

 **Roxygirl- I'd throw a party if he arrived too. I like that opening. I might tweak it a tiny bit, but thank you! I noticed that you changed it to past tense. It's completely fine that you acted as critic. I needed it. Yes, I read. That sounds like an interesting what of checking. Between you and me (and, well, everyone else, because they are reading this) I'm thinking at some point, I may revert this into 1st person, only using Melissa and Felipe. What do you think? (other reviewers, you can state your opinions too)**

 **GuestGirl- I noticed that too. Well, I corrected it, I hope it sounds better now. (Go look, if you want) Yep. In his point of view, he felt like he had the bullet wounds when she mentioned her brother. So, as a brother separated from his family, he wants her to be calm and know that her brother isn't worrying. And, I guess it's also a medical reason, so she doesn't injure herself more. Yeah.. I know I could ignore it. Makes sense. But I'd** ** _prefer_** **that it isn't said. But if you say it at the end for all your reviews, I can look it over.**

 **Well, that's all of them. Now, onto the next chapter that you have all been 'Melissa's' to see. (see what I did there? *snickers*)**

* * *

Felipe was beside himself. Melissa was nowhere to be found. And he can't get over his fear of the jungle. When his sister was around, he felt safe, he trusted that she knew more than now that she is gone, he can't set one foot past the village boundaries.

'Why can't I just do it? Why is my fear overruling my drive to stay by my sister? She's my twin sister! I love her and no fear should stand in my way.' He stares at the line, willing his feet to move. But a small voice in his mind tells him, 'It isn't safe, Felipe!' So he doesn't. He just stares.

"Felipe," the hiker turns to see Alice walk over to him, "It's getting late. You should come inside."

"No, I'll be okay," Felipe says, looking back at the jungle. Alice puts a hand on his shoulder.

"Please Felipe, you need rest." He looks at her and then nods.

"Okay, Alice, okay. I'll be over in a moment, I promise." Felipe looks at the jungle one last time, and then spots something. Felipe looks closer to the jungle edge. "Is someone there?" He asks. He can't see anything. "I'm seeing things," he tells himself with a sigh. He turns around to go inside.

"Are you Felipe? Melissa's brother?" Felipe freezes. He turns around and sees a pair of brown eyes staring at him from the foliage.

"Ah!" He yells, startled. "Y-Yes.. who are you? Do you know where she is?"

"I'm taking care of her. She can't be moved yet. But she is going to be alright," the eyes tell him. Felipe turns around to tell the others.

"Wait!" He says, starting to turn back, "Are you the-" But the eyes are gone.

* * *

Melissa wakes up to see the turtle looking at the fire, this time sitting closer to her. He has the cloak off, since there is no need for it. He pokes the fire with a stick and looks at the little flame on the end of the tip longingly, like it reminded him of something.

"I spoke with your brother, Felipe," he says, without moving, "He knows you are alive."

"Can I see him?" Melissa asks. The turtle shakes his head.

"No one can know where you are, not even you. When I bring you back, it will be while you are asleep."

"Oh," Melissa says, not knowing if that is a good thing. But Felipe is probably less of a worrying wreck now that this stranger has talked to him.

She gets more food in her, with the help of her hero. He had also retrieved more water, which she guzzles down greedily. He checks her wounds daily. When he isn't attending to her, he goes to a place in the cave where it is less lit. Melissa watches to the best of her ability as he takes out a pair of glistening swords. He trains on his own, with and without them. He sits on his own, meditating by the looks of it.

Once, he had even left for a while and came back with a light bruise. "Robbers?" Melissa asks. He just grunts in return and checks her wounds. He trains more and gets them food. The next day, he checks her wounds and they look okay to travel with.

"You are well enough. This is your last day here." He helps her sit up and she tests her arms, though she can't hold much.

"Will I ever see you again?" She asks. The stranger looks at her.

"That is highly unlikely," he answers, "I don't think I'm going anywhere for a long time."

"..If you would," Melissa says, "Where would you go?"

"I'd.. I'd go to New York," he says, putting his stick down, "Only other place in the world I'd go to." Melissa wants to ask why, but she has a feeling in her gut that he won't answer. So she keeps it in and asks a different question.

"Do you have a family?"

".. I don't want to talk about it."

'So that is a yes.' Melissa doesn't want to push him anymore than she has to. "Is that your favorite color?" She asks, regarding his bandana.

"No. Well.. it's grown on me. Blue represents calm, loyalty, and confidence. Other colors mean other things."

"For example..?"

"Red, willpower, passion, vigor. Purple, wisdom, creativity, intellect. Orange, determination, enthusiasm, joy." He looks up quickly to see her reaction, then ducks his head, "along with others, like I've said."

"You must know those colors very well," she comments. He nods his head. They don't talk much the rest of the day. Melissa tries to stand, but that is a no go with the pain she receives. Then, it becomes night.

"Go to sleep," the stranger says, "And goodbye."

"I wish I could see you again," Melissa says. The stranger shrugs.

"It, was nice, having company," he admits. Melissa lays down and tries to sleep.

* * *

 **Okay, I don't edit these before putting them on, so I think this needs some work. Be honest, please.**

 **Sorry I didn't get this up earlier. It's just THE INTERNET WASN'T WORKING! But, it's on now. Don't worry, I didn't suffer without it.**

 **So close to the end! Like, really close. Super-de-duper close. Then! I'll maybe go through it and add (I forgot to mention what she looks like, AHH!) parts I think I should add up. Or.. I'll do that another time.. *shrugs* It's either that or Sentōki (sequel to Tsuma).**


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, the last chapter does not have an updated version up. Rook, I hope you can get critiques for each of these.**

 **This one is short, should I just add the epilogue to the end of this one?**

 _ **[This has been edited thanks to the help of rookblonkorules]**_

* * *

The ghost of the jungle puts his cloak on in the early morning and gently lifts Melissa up. A small echo of a thump hits his eardrums. He looks down at the rock. A small leather bound book had slipped from Melissa's pocket and had landed by his two-toed foot. He puts his toe under it and flips it up to his hand.

He stows it away. He climbs the vines to the jungle floor and walks to the village. He looks at Melissa. She's asleep. She'll know about him. But he can't keep her down there. It wouldn't be right.

'She had a family,' he reminds himself. He picks up his pace, being careful of the human in his arms. He reaches the road and looks for anyone coming. Then he leaps out and sets her on the road. A couple kids are playing near the entrance to the road, so he goes back into the foliage and intentionally moves a tree to get their attention.

It works. The kids investigate and find Melissa. A few break off and start yelling in Spanish that they found her. Soon, the man he talked to, Felipe, comes running. He doesn't stop until he's right at her side. The turtle watches as they bring a stretcher and lift her up to visit the doctor. He finds a branch of a tall tree and looks out over the village. Both Felipe and the little boy in the brown hat look up and see him.

"The ghost of the jungle.." the little boy whispers. The ghost decides it is time to leave, and disappears into the trees.

* * *

"Melissa?" Melissa hears a voice that she recognizes through the sleepy haze, "Melissa, can you hear me?"

"Felipe?" She yawns and tries to stretch, "Ah! Oww.." She opens her eyes. She's in her little hut, Felipe by her side. "Felipe," she says. He smiles when he sees her eyes.

"I missed you," he says. They exchange words, keeping it to simple stuff. But then, Felipe gets curious. "Did you see him? The ghost?"

"He-" Melissa catches herself, "He prefers that people don't know who he is." Felipe nods and the doctor comes in to look at her wounds.

After two days, a few jeeps arrive to take the hikers home early. They've had enough adventure in the jungle. Two of them are packed for the trip to a small airport nearby. But one jeep is planning on staying. A young adult with orangey red hair is one of the occupants of the final jeep. She walks over to the hikers, who are looking through their stuff one last time. Melissa is sitting on her own, a hand on her arm.

The stranger sits next to her. "Hi," she says.

Melissa groans a little before saying, "Hi," back. "What brings you to the jungle?" Melissa tries.

"Business. Looking for a statue of an ancient civilization. You?"

"Attempted to hike North," Melissa says. The stranger chuckles.

"Looks like it didn't go your way."

"Yeah.. but you wouldn't believe a far fetched tale, would you?"

"Well, I don't anything can surprise me anymore."

"How about a ghost."

The new arrival looks at Felipe. "A ghost?"

"Sí, señorita," the little boy in the brown hat says, standing behind her, "El Fantasma de la Selva. The Ghost of the Jungle."

"..Tell me about this ghost." He tells a brief story about what happened. He says how he even saw the ghost.

"Can you show me?"

"Sí, this way," he starts to pull her away.

"I hope you heal well," she tells Melissa.

"What's your name?"

"I'm April," she says.

"Melissa. I'd shake but-"

"I understand. Sayonara." Melissa wonders at the misplaced goodbye and Felipe helps her stand. Another hiker takes her other side They all get into the jeeps and are driven to their plane. Melissa is helped into a seat of the small plane, and Felipe sits right next to her. She wants to catalog what has happened the last few days, but she can't find her journal. "Felipe, where's my journal?"

"Oh, it was laying on top of you when we found you, here." He hands it to her. "I had it for safe keeping. Didn't want you trying to write when you were healing."

"Ah," Melissa gets her book back. She is the only one that uses it, and yet.. there is a small fold in the corner of the last page. When Felipe isn't looking, she opens it up. There is one word written there that makes her smile.

* * *

 **So.. what do you think he wrote? (Not answering though, it'll be in the epilogue.)**

 **Should I have more detail?**

 **Who liked having April in it?**

 **Overall comments?**


	6. Chapter 6- Epilogue

**This is the epilogue. Last chapter of the story.**

 **Clocking in at 314 words (not including the A/N, it's 159), it is super short, so if you have any suggestions on to how to lengthen it, I'd love to hear it!**

* * *

A month later, Melissa and Felipe are visiting their family in New York. The tv is on and she is writing in her journal of the boring day she had. Then something the reporter says catched her attention.

"No one knows what happened at the Winters Corp building, but a security camera froze at one image," Melissa looks up to see the picture next to his head. "Unfortunately, nothing can be gained from the picture, only that four individuals were apart of it. Nothing can pinpoint who they are." There's a line of four bodies facing the camera. She can't see what they are looking at, but she recognizes one of them through the haze. She's seen him before.

They are four mutant turtles, wearing blue, red, purple, and orange. Each has a different weapon, but the blue one's swords shine even in the dark picture. Melissa smiles and looks back at what he wrote in her journal.

 _Leo_

* * *

 **So, yeah.. you guys (those that guessed) were right. The title implies it, does it not?**

 **With this story being down on here, I'll revise it a little later. (I still haven't updated what the gang looks like.. oops.) But I think this is a good ending.**

 **What do you think?**

 **(Rook, I still need a review for Chapter 4. And don't forget this one!)**

 **Oh yeah! I forgot to mention. Sentōki is up now. Has been since.. Tuesday. So if you have nothing to read and are waiting for the sequel of Tsuma, there it is. (But if you haven't, READ TSUMA!)**


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